A Newfound Life
by FangirlWithFandoms
Summary: What if Riley Matthews grew up differently? Riley's life isn't what it seems. She's not the happy, bubbly girl she used to be. She's ready to explode. What if all it took was a bunch of unfortunate events, and a stranger to help the once-happy girl find her way to a new life? It's about time the world met the girl. GMW and THE VAMPIRE DIARIES CROSSOVER. Non-cannon. RILEY-CENTRIC!
1. A Game of Chess

**Hello! It's been awhile since I've written some good old fanfiction, but I've recently been inspired to write. I've always been a fan of Boy Meets World so when I decided to watch Girl Meets World, I fell in love completely. Since I'm a little bit older than the normal viewer of this show, I must warn you that this is a MATURE story. Also, this is a CROSSOVER between GIRL MEETS WORLD and VAMPIRE DIARIES, which is another show that I hold dearly in my heart. So if you're not a fan of that show, please be warned that there will be several unavoidable references to TVD-world; this includes its characters, ideas, and settings. Finally, the last warning is in regards to the main couple of this story. There will be no Rucas, Lucaya, Riarkle, Rilaya, or any other widely-known ship as the endgame couple of this story (well maybe except Corpanga of course). Although I love the characters of GMW, there will be some negative ideas about some characters implied in the story, but this story is RILEY-CENTRIC.**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. The Originals are in New Orleans. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened, Damon and Stefan still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! This story is a work of fiction.**

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REALIZATION - a game of chess

Bright lights trickle into the room. The bay window is open, and the smell of flowers from the fire escape garden and the smoke emulsion coming from the New York streets bombards the sleeping brunette as she lies in her bed. The girl is half-awake, yet she refuses get out of bed, refuses to accept the reality waiting for her beyond the bedroom.

"RILEYYYY!" a voice erupts from the living room. It's her younger brother, her beloved annoying alarm clock in the morning. The girl opens her eyes and stares at her ceiling.

On most days, Riley would jump out of bed and sing her way to the kitchen, where her family waits to eat breakfast in communion. Yet today, Riley was simply too tired. In fact, the young 14 year old had been tired for a while now. She's tired of pretending to be _Smiley Riley._ She's tired of the Triangle. _Oh the Triangle._ She feels sick to the bones whenever she thinks of it. Her gut fills with dread and her heart wrenches as she is reminded of the drama surrounding her and her friends.

The worst part of the whole ordeal is that she couldn't talk to anyone about it, about how she was feeling. At times, her friends made sure to make the situation obvious, as if to find something that bonds them together. She theorizes that the triangle for her friends is something that makes them stronger while she, herself, gets weaker.

She wonders if Maya feels that way too. She wonders if Maya wakes up in a sweat everyday just worrying over if she hurts somebody because of feelings. She wonders if Maya barely eats like she does everyday. She wonders if Maya feels as useless as she does. Also, she wonders when she started saying Maya's name with such distaste.

Maya was her best friend, but nowadays, it didn't seem that way. Riley dreamt of the days when Maya would look at her with such friendly, adoring eyes. Now, all she sees in the blonde's eyes are signs of competition. Its as if Riley could already hear the wheels turning in her best friend's brain, thinking of ways to one-up her in favor of Lucas' heart.

And then there was Lucas. The cowboy to her princess. The subway boy to her city girl. The one who captured her heart. The boy who just couldn't decide. There was a time when she could look into Lucas' eyes and stare at him with love plastered obviously across her face. These days, all she felt was shame. She felt that her feelings for him had to be hidden, in fear that she would wreck the fragility of feelings circling the three of them.

But then she felt lost because at night, she goes to sleep doubting her feelings for the blonde boy, who _apparently_ captured her heart and that of her friend's as well. She watched the classic princess stories with Auggie, and she finds herself comparing her situation. Despite all her feelings for Lucas, it seems as though their love was fleeting when it hasn't even started.

They're all chess pieces, unmoving. No one brave enough to make their move. No one willing to lose.

"RILEY MATTHEWS! You're going to be late for school!" her mother shouts, cutting Riley off from her thoughts. The brunette moved frantically off her bed and into her closet to look for something to wear.

By the time her mother yelled for her again, Riley is out of her room, not even sparing a glance to the bay window. She knows that Maya isn't coming; her _friend_ was probably already in the train station, waiting for the train Lucas was in.

 _"_ _Riley, it only seems fair that I get to go with Lucas to school. This is my only alone time with him, since you get him during Math class while I'm in Science class",_ her friend explained to her a few weeks ago.

At the time, it probably sounded great to both her and Maya's ears, but Riley couldn't help but think about how unfair it all really was, how unfair that she was stuck in this situation. How unfair of Lucas to not make his choice. How unfair indeed.

"Hey look who decided to get out of bed" her dad joked as she joined her family in the kitchen.

"Sorry, I was tired. Guess I stayed up too late studying…" she murmured, knowing all too well that she was lying.

"Yeah you do look tired" said a pouting Auggie. Riley gave him a small smile, her heart lifting a little bit for her brother's concern.

"Don't study too hard, Riley. You're going to tire yourself out" her mother said with a stern voice. "Besides there's still space for you on the fridge beside Maya's A"

With that statement, Riley felt her throat constrict. She couldn't help but be angry at how her parents treated her and her friend.

" _Mom, what am I good at?"_

 _"_ _Sleeping"_

 _"_ _Maya is a fierce amazon warrior"_

She understood that Maya needed a family in her life. She understands that Maya needs that acceptance she's craved for so long. She loved Maya with all her heart, and she wanted to give this to her. But a small tiny part in Riley bitterly thought of how Maya has chosen to get and Riley has given too much. She's always been the sacrificial one, but she knew that maybe, she needed to start loving herself more and her family's not exactly helping her in that regard.

"I know I'm just tired, Mom. I promise" Riley lies through her teeth. Her hands ball up into fists under the table.

"You know, you're tired because of that darn 'Triangle'" her dad says. "If only Friar could just make up his mind then we'll all finally be free of this mess"

Riley looks up at her father, and she tries to stop the tears. How could her father say those words without even considering how hurt she is because of her situation? How could he just disregard her and her feelings?

"Dad…" she whispers, but no words come out. She couldn't even think of what to say; she was too hurt to say anything.

"Dad you can't just say that! What if Lucas does make his choice?" Auggie pipes in. He, thankfully, was too distracted to notice Riley and her conflicting emotions.

"Then we'll help whoever gets hurt and accept whoever gets chosen. It doesn't really matter" her dad answers.

Riley could feel her happiness dwindling down as the seconds passed. Her parents didn't care who got chosen. Her parents didn't even think about how hurt she'll be if Lucas picks Maya. Yes they'd help her, but she knew that they'd be ecstatic for Maya. Sometimes, they just couldn't decide who their actual daughter was. Sometimes she felt like her and Maya were always competing, for Lucas, for grades, and for her family.

"Well I think whoever doesn't get picked should have their own family helping them" Auggie argued. He's too young to really understand the situation, but he's also too smart for his age and loving in nature.

"Auggie! We'll help whoever gets hurt, of course" their mom rebuked.

 _Let Katy handle Maya, for god's sake. Handle your own daughter!,_ Riley says in her head. She's tired of competing with Maya. Too tired.

"Uh, I think I'm gonna go ahead" Riley excused herself from breakfast. She was too tired of hearing her parents talk about her and her friends.

She tries to hide the fact that she only ate a couple of spoonfuls of cereal, and she knows her parents are completely oblivious to her uneaten meal; Auggie, on the other hand, looks at her with narrow eyes as he sees her full bowl. She shakes her head at him, giving him her ' _terrifying-older-sister'_ face, and he looks away.

"But Riles, you can just ride with me. I just need to fix my bag and then we can go to the car" her dad says as he reads the newspaper.

"Its okay, dad. I promised to meet Farkle by the train station today to help him carry his art project" she lies.

"Okay, then. Just text me if you and your friends are going to the bakery later!" her mother barely finishes her sentence before she's already out the door.

She practically sprinted down the stairs of the main hall. Finally, she's out of the apartment building and on the sidewalk. She looks up to the sky and sighs. Her tears finally come pouring down the side of her face, and she shudders. The people around her, random New Yorkers, push and shove against her still frame as they try to make it to their workplaces on time; they are blissfully unaware of the turmoil going on inside of her.

Yes, they were all parts of a chess game. All playing their own roles, all playing to win and to lose. Unfortunately, she was the stalemate.

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 **Please favorite the story if you liked it! Also, leave a review and comment on the story to let me know what you think! TVD becomes more evident in the coming-chapters so please be patient! Hope you guys enjoyed.**


	2. Helpless

**Hello, I'm back for a new chapter! Things get a little dark here for Riley so please tread carefully! We see a little bit more of what's happening to Riley that explains why she's not the usual happy-Riley. Hope y'all enjoy!**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! This story is a work of fiction.**

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REALIZATION - helpless

"SMILEY RILEY! Come here! I can help you out if poor Lukey-boo doesn't want to" shouts a voice from behind her.

Riley shudders, and continues moving towards the train. The people on the platform are pushing and shoving against her body, but she knows that she needs to get to the train.

"RIIIIIILEY, why don't you stop a little bit? Let us catch up! We just wanna play a game" another voice sings menacingly. Riley bites her lip to keep her from crying out, and she keeps a tight grip on her bag as she fights her way against the bustling of the other passengers. She just needs to go to school. She just needs to get away.

Unfortunately, one passerby bumps into Riley all too forcefully, causing her to stumble back. She knew that nobody was there to catch her, so she closes her eyes and braces herself from the impact of the floor, but it doesn't come. She feels cold arms wrap around her, familiar cold arms. Her heart stills for a moment, and she opens her eyes only to be met with three pairs of eyes shining wickedly down at her.

"Oh look boys, we finally caught up. Smiley Riley here seems to have gotten pushed" Donny crooned while he tightened his grip on her. She felt his nails dig into her skin and tried to squirm away from his touch.

Beside Donny stood two other boys, Olly and Asher. She knew them all too well. They were her tormentors.

She had met them through Lucas. They were his team mates on the football team. All three of them were seniors, and rumors about them were heard frequently around school. They were troublemakers, playboys, and rich kids with too much money and too little attention from their parents. They fought anyone who even dared to contradict them, and after, they would throw money at the principal to help stop them from getting any sort of punishment. Once they had their sights set on someone, they'd do anything and everything to get what they wanted.

And apparently, they wanted her.

At first, it seemed funny to her and her friends. The three seniors started frequenting Topanga's, and they started hanging around Lucas more. She even thought they were nice because they asked a lot of questions about her and they would push kids out of her way whenever she was walking through the halls.

But then things started getting weird. The three learned of the Triangle, and they started making jokes about how Lucas couldn't get laid. Lucas played it off as nothing because he wanted to get along with his new team mates, so he accepted whatever they said without argument. They started following her wherever she went. Every time she was alone, they would surround her and find any opportunity to grab her by the arms or pull her into a bear hug. They started groping her body and playing with her hair. She remembers one incident where it became apparent how malicious their intentions were.

 _She was alone in the hallway. She decided to help her father out by organizing his office while he's on detention duty._

 _It was way too late for her to be there, and the hallway is completely pitch dark, except for the one light shining inside the classroom where her father is busy looking after the punished students. She's carrying papers from the staff room to the classroom when a pair of arms wrap around her waist._

 _"_ _Hey Smiley Riley" Asher whispered against her ear. She jumps and all the papers fall from her hands and onto the floor._

 _"_ _Oh no, Riiiiiiiles. Looks like you've made a mess" Donny chastises as he appears in front of her. He shakes his finger in front of her and points at the papers lying on the ground._

 _She feels pure terror in her veins as she watches Donny step closer until he's invading her space. At this point, she's stuck in between Asher, who's still holding her arms behind her back, and Donny who's smirking down at her._

 _"_ _Oh hey guys, um why are you still here? Are you guys in de-detention? Di-did training end late?" she stammers, unable to even struggle away._

 _"_ _Nope….we were looking for you, Matthews" Olly replied as he stepped into her view. He circled around them all and looked at her from head to toe, as if he was judging her._

 _"_ _Uhhh why?" she whispers, trying to remain cool and collected despite her inner panic._

 _"_ _Shhhhh" Donny says softly. He placed his finger on her lips to shush her, and she shakes as he slowly drags that finger down her face. It reaches her chin and she squeaks. The finger continues downwards until it touches her collarbone._

 _"_ _Don't you think that there's too much in the way, Dons?" Asher asks playfully. She can feel his hands squeeze her forearms, and she closes her eyes in pain._

 _Donny hums in agreement and begins to pull at her top with his other hand until she feels the thread begin to tear. She refuses to open her eyes as she feels the finger that lies on her collarbone begin to inch lower and lower. She screams as the finger is right above her breast, but the scream is covered by Donny's hand._

 _The finger goes down and down and down, but it never stops. She opens her eyes and sees Donny giving her an evil smile. Olly is behind him with a phone in his hand, recording everything._

 _No no no this can't be happening. She uses her legs and tries to push Donny away but Asher wraps one of his legs around both of hers, locking her in place._

 _"_ _That's enough, Donny. Detention's almost over, her dad's gonna be finished any second now" Olly warns. She feels tears running down her cheeks and she bites on the hand that's covering her mouth. "Besides, we got what we needed."_

 _"_ _Great, guess I've got something to watch later tonight" Donny laughs._

 _"_ _Who needs porn when we've got you, Smiley" Asher whispers. His breath burns her ears and she uses her back to push against him._

 _"_ _Now now, no need to get all worked up, Riles. We're letting you go….but if you even try to tell anyone about what happened here, this video's gonna be on the internet before you even finish pleading your case" Olly warns._

 _"_ _Do you understand, Riles? We play with you and you don't say a word…or else" Donny repeats. She nods quickly, and they let go of her. She falls to the floor, and struggles to breathe. Her knees hurt from hitting the ground too hard, but all she could do was grip the papers beneath her hands, gasping for air._

 _"_ _I'm gonna have fun playing this game" Asher jokes as the three walk away from her and into the darkness, leaving her kneeling on the ground and surrounded by paper._

She remembers her father finding her in the hallway, still gathering the papers after finally calming down. She remembers lying about stumbling in the darkness and accidentally dropping the papers. Thankfully, her father was too busy scolding her to notice her still-teary eyes.

"Riley, let's go and play! Forget school; let's go somewhere fun…somewhere we can have our alone time" Asher said as he lifted his hand to brush away a lock of hair from her face. Riley winces at the touch and tries to stand up but Donny keeps her in his arms. She felt his nails push roughly on her forearms and lets out a sob as blood starts to run down her arms.

"Knock it off, guys. Umm we can play later? I'm going to be late f-for school" she said as she pulls her arms away from Donny. Riley looked down at her new wounds and rubbed her arm with her hands in an attempt to wipe away the blood.

"What do you say, boys? Shall we let dear little Riley go to school?" Olly snickers. Riley prayed that they would let her go.

"Fineeeee. She can go, but we'll meet during lunch" Donny agreed, almost begrudgingly, yet the last part of his statement was clearly meant as a threat. Riley felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand from the evident warning.

"You better run, little freshie. You'll be late for school" Olly grinned as he handed Riley her fallen bag. Riley quickly turned around and ran away from the three boys.

"SEE YOU AT LUNCH", was all she heard as she entered the train cart.

Riley looked around at the other passengers, and noticed how they were staring at her, or more specifically, staring at her arms. She glanced down at her arms and winced as she saw the obvious nail marks left by Donny. For such a small wound, she was surprised to see a lot of blood dripping from her. She groaned and thought of how to cover up her wounds to hide them from sight.

 _Farkle's old jacket!_

She was supposed to give it back to him since he had left it at Topanga's after their study session. She dug through her stuff in her bag, and sighed in relief when she felt the material in her hands.

Quickly, she pulled out the piece of clothing from her bag and wore it. She closed her eyes to avoid the stares coming from other people.

Terror ran through her body as she thought about how she was supposed to meet her tormentors later in the afternoon. She knew that if she went to them, they'd do terrible things to her. Yet if she didn't go, they'd ruin her and her friends reputations by labelling her a slut.

She couldn't do anything. She was lost. She was helpless.

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 **Don't you just hate Olly, Asher, and Donny? Just a warning, they're gonna be back sooner than you think. Hopefully, you guys liked this chapter. It was a bit hard for me to write because I absolutely adore Riley, so I really didn't like writing her being helpless. Anyways, please favorite and review if you guys like the story so far! PS Don't worry, it gets REALLY REALLY GOOD in the next chapter, I kind of pick up the pace. So get ready for that! Hope you guys enjoyed!**


	3. Lunch and a Meeting

**HEY Y'ALL I'M BACK AGAIN FOR A NEW CHAPTER! In this chapter, there is a big Clique Six Confrontation, Riley and "the torment trio" meet again (things get real bad), and Riley meets someone new, and it's someone from TVD! Hope you guys enjoy!**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! ALSO, I DON'T THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO KEVIN WILLIAMSON, JULIE PLEC, AND THE CW! This story is a work of fiction.**

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REALIZATION - lunch and a meeting

Eventually, Riley did get to school. Although she felt tiny sparks of pain every time she lifted her arms, she resigned herself to acting her normal bubbly self. The rest of her morning went uneventful; her classes were boring, but kept her thinking of other things. Her friends were completely oblivious to her forced-smiles, but she was thankful that nobody really noticed.

"Riley! Hey, wake up!" Maya snapped her fingers directly in front of Riley's face, breaking her off from her reverie.

"Oh what? Hey! Sorry, peaches. Guess I was somewhere else…" Riley gave a measly excuse, which Maya accepted. The rest of the Clique Six gave her a questioning look and she shrugged at their glances. They were all standing by the lockers, waiting for their next class, which so happened to be her father's. Unconsciously, she grabbed the sleeves of Farkle's jacket and pulled them further down her arms, as if to hide her wounds even more.

"Soooo, did you hear? Sadie Hawkins is right around the corner" Maya grinned, wiggling her eyebrows in a suggestive manner. Riley inwardly groaned. The Triangle was already complicated, and their first high school dance would only make it more trouble as it is.

"Oh yeah, Riley, thanks for bringing my jacket" Farkle said as he moved closer to her to take it off her body. She stilled as she felt Farkle's hands on her shoulder to help her take off the jacket; she knew that if she took of the jacket, then they'd all see her wounds and the questions would start.

"Wait! Can I borrow it for the rest of the day? I'm kinda feeling a little bit um cold?" Riley said hurriedly. She saw Farkle narrow his eyes at her nervous reaction, but he wordlessly let her keep his jacket.

"ANYWAYS, I've decided that I think I should take Lucas this time, and you can have him on the next dance" Maya interrupted. The rest looked at her, judging her would-be response to Maya's claim. Lucas looked at her guiltily, and she knew that he probably had already agreed to this plan beforehand.

Riley sighed, and thought about how Maya never in her life took no as an answer. She was too stubborn, and maybe that's the reason why they were friends in the first place. They were both stubborn. Both of them stood their ground with how they acted, just like how they stood their ground with how they felt about Lucas.

 _What kind of friendship is this? If we truly loved each other as friends, we would both just give him up,_ Riley thought in her mind. _I'm so tired of this constant push and pull._

"I mean, it only seems fair" Maya continued. Riley felt her anger flare up at that statement. She was tired of hearing that excuse, and before she could stop herself, the words started pouring out from her mouth.

"Oh yeah, Maya. It's only fair, right? Like how it 'only seems fair' that you get the guy that you _knew_ I obviously liked? Or like how it's 'only fair' that you feel because your own family isn't present, it feels right to _steal_ mine? Or wait how about how its 'only fair' that you have to have all the attention, and make me feel sorry for even feeling sorry about you? NO, you choose, Maya, because I don't really think you know the meaning of 'fair' even if it was right in front of you and slapped you IN THE FACE!" she finished off her mini-tirade. Her friends stood in front of her and stared at her as if she had grown two heads. They never expected her to basically explode like that.

"Riles…" Maya mumbled, looking at her with sad eyes.

"Riley, that was totally uncalled for. Maya never meant you any harm" Zay argued, defending her best friend. He looked at her with accusing eyes, ones that looked like they could kill.

"Yeah, Riles. What was that about? You know that Maya's never had it easy like you" Lucas said. At that statement, Riley's heart broke. She knew that Lucas had taken Maya's side, and she accepted that it was time for his decision.

"I never asked for this life, Lucas! You say that Maya's never had it easy? Well it's not easy pretending to be all-happy Riley for you all! I'm so tired of all this. I'm tired of the Triangle. I'm tired of this need to always be on the same ground as you, Maya. For once in my life, I'm admitting defeat, and I'm okay with that. I don't want to be equally-leveled with you. I want to be my own person." she said earnestly.

"So I'm done. Lucas, it's obvious that you can't make a decision. So I'm doing it for you. It was clearly easy for you to take Maya's side on this…so it'll be easy to be by her side" Riley felt her voice quiver as she let her heart sink.

"What? Riley, no. You know I care about you.." argued Lucas; he looked so beautiful with his pleading eyes, but Riley was done fighting.

"No, Lucas. I know you do, and I know you care for Maya too. I mean, _I care for Maya_ , as well, but I can't now. I may be second-choice to you guys, to everyone else, for god's sake, even to my family. But I can't be second choice to you" Riley said with utmost calmness. "I deserve better, and I'm not accepting anything less. Maya, I hope you'll be happy, and Lucas, you better treat her right."

"Riles…" Lucas said helplessly for he knew that Riley had made up her mind. He would've said more but at that point, the bell rang above them, signaling them for their next class.

"We'll talk about this at lunch, after class" Maya responded stubbornly. Riley sighed and felt her gut quench at the though of lunch. There was no way she was going to survive this day if she had both her friends, and her tormentors waiting for her come lunch time.

Class went on without any major drama, despite Riley feeling her friends' constant confused stares from behind her. Her father could see that there was obvious tension surrounding the friends, and he tried to relate the lesson to the situation they were experiencing.

Riley knew of her father's technique and was resilient no matter how much her father was trying to push on the issue; she gave short answers to her father, and kept her mouth shut whenever her friends mentioned anything about what had just transpired before class.

Riley was too distracted by the constant ticking of the clock. She knew that she had just minutes before all hell was set loose. Her heart raced with a speed that could rival that of a race car's as she watched the hands of the clock inch further and further closer to lunch time.

There was no way she could let the three seniors have their way with her, but at the same time, she had to get her hands on Olly's phone. She needed to erase that video from existence; that way they would hold nothing against her. Also, she had to find a way to evade her friends, and all the drama that came with them. She had to weigh her options carefully.

Before she knew it, the bell had rung. She watched as everyone around her rushed to get out of the classroom. Her dad gave her a questioning look as he was erasing the chalkboard, but she busied herself by packing away her bag. She could feel her friends approaching her, and she knew that the only way she was going to get to the seniors was if she didn't let her friends get to her. Their eventual fight had to be postponed to a later time.

Quickly, and before they could even open their mouths, she spared them an apologetic smile, and ran out of the room with her bag in her hand. She pushed her way through the hoards of high school students walking around the hallway. Once, she was sure that her friends weren't following her, she slowed down her pace as she walked towards the gym, where she knew her tormentors were waiting for her on the empty bleachers.

The gym was empty save for them. There was nobody to be found and it was eerily quiet. She trembled with each step she took, but she squared her shoulders in an attempt to make herself look unnerved.

"There you are. We thought we had to go looking for you" Olly said from behind her. She spun around, and was met with a smirking Olly looking down at her.

"You get lost, little lamb?" Asher chuckled beside him. Riley felt goosebumps on her wounded arms but she tried not to let her fear show.

"Is that Minkus' jacket on you?" Donny said as he appeared right beside her. She jumped a little as he placed his hands on her shoulders to inspect what she was wearing.

"Yeah, thought I saw that on him yesterday when he was walking down the hall with that weirdo girlfriend of his" answered Olly as he too gave the jacket a look.

"Oooh guess our little Riley here is a slut after all. I fucking knew it! Got tired of little virgin Lucas so you decided that the freaky genius would do for a good fuck, huh?"

"NO! I-I just borrowed it from him" Riley explained. She tried to push away their slimy hands as they pulled the jacket away from her, but it was to no avail.

"Now why would you need to wear a jacket, little lamb? Why it's the middle of spring, it isn't cold at all" Asher said, noticing her discomfort.

Finally, the jacket was pulled off of her, and her arms were left bare. She hissed as the air stung her open wounds.

"Oh looky here, Dons. Guess you got a little touch on Riley-boo" Olly surmised as he grabbed her arm roughly. He pointed at the wounds and laughed menacingly as Riley started to sob at the pain of her bruises being touched.

"Haha it looks great on you, Riles. But you know what? It seems a little boring…I think we should add a little more to it" Donny said as he winked at her. Riley's whole body shook at his words, and she felt bile rise in her throat at the idea of being touched again. Asher started to rip her shirt, and she started crying.

"W-wait. please no" Riley begged as the three boys grabbed her by the arms. She used her legs to kick at them, but they just took the hits as if they were done by a four year old.

Riley could hear the three laughing maniacally, and she prayed that she could get away from this, from them. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head. She looked at Olly as he kept his hands on her arms to get her from punching him, and she saw that his phone was popping out from his back pocket. She started focusing her kicks directly on Olly, and watched as the phone kept sliding further and further out of his pocket.

 _I need that phone! Get the phone, Riley! Get the phone and RUN!,_ was all she chanted in her head to motivate her. The other two focused on trying to tie a blindfold around her eyes but she shook her head wildly so that they couldn't get a stable hold on her.

Finally, she heard the phone drop to the floor. Using all the strength she had left, Riley pulled herself away from Olly's hold, and bent down to grab the phone. Once she was sure that she had a tight hold on the phone, she quickly stood up and faced the harassers. She grabbed a discarded basketball that was lying on the bench, and aimed it at Donny. He was hit in the lower region, and he bent down, doubling over in pain. Asher ran at her, and Riley used her other hand to punch hi in the gut; with that, Asher also fell to the ground as he coughed.

Riley didn't wait for Olly to catch up to her; instead, she sprinted her way out of the gym, ignoring the calls of the three boys behind her. Despite being free of the gym, she kept on running; her legs pushing her further and further away. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as she ran, not even letting her brain register her location.

Finally, her heart began to slow down, and she felt her legs give out. She fell to the ground, and gasped for air. All the soreness and pain from being grabbed and fighting back came rushing back, and she felt as if she had gotten whiplash. She started to sob as she knelt on the ground. Her hand still gripped the phone, and her other one started to pound on the ground so hard that her knuckles started to bleed.

"Hey, you. Uhhh…kid…do you need some help?" an uncertain voice asked from above her. Riley stilled her movements and went silents. Slowly, she looked up and was met with a pair of confused eyes looking down at her.

In front of her stood a man who looked to be in his early twenties. He was dressed in a white shirt and leather jacket, and he had sunglasses slid on top of his head. He had unruly black hair, and he was very pale. He was pretty handsome, in a bad boy way. He was a complete stranger, but Riley oddly felt totally at peace with this guy, despite not even knowing his name.

"Did you hear me? You seriously need to stop hurting yourself" the man said. He gave her bleeding knuckles a pointed look and shrugged.

Riley remained silent but kept looking at the man in confusion. She looked around her and was shocked when she recognized the familiar sight of Central Park. Around her, people were jogging and walking their dogs. She could hear the birds chirping above her in the trees.

 _Did I really run that far?_

"Hey, kid? You deaf or something? Here you want some ice cream? Maybe that'll help" the man lifted his hand to show her a plastic bag filled with a tub of ice cream. Riley cocked her head sideways at the guy. Why was a stranger offering her ice cream?

"Come on! Just take the freaking ice cream, it's not a damn gun. Its not gonna hurt you" the man said exasperatedly. He shakes the plastic in his hand to show her how non-threatening his offer is.

Finally, Riley clears her throat and uses her bleeding hand to wipe away the tears from her eyes. She gives the man a pointed glare and says, "My mom says that I should never talk to strangers and that also means not taking ice cream from one also."

"And she speaks!" the man says sarcastically. He gives her a smirk and continues, "Well then, your mom taught you good, but did she also remind you not to bang your hands on cement ground and cry uncontrollably in public? Because she better work on that."

Riley blushes and looks away for a split-second. The man was right, though. Her current situation was very questionable as well.

"Anyways, if you're so damn touchy with the stranger issue then fine, my name's Damon. See, you know my name therefore we aren't strangers anymore. So take the ice cream" he introduces himself.

"What if you're one of those serial killers or kidnappers who use poisoned ice cream to entice unsuspecting victims?" she argues with a suspicious look.

"You know, for a crazy bleeding crying girl, you sure can be quite the hassle" Damon groans as he slides his glasses back on to his eyes.

"I don't need your pity!"

"I'm not giving it to you. All I'm offering is ice cream, kid!" he says, nonchalantly. "Plus, you're gonna end up freaking out some unsuspecting jogger or even worse, you could get run over by those marathon cyclists!"

Riley thought about what he said, and sighed. He was right; she needed to get up and clean herself up. Carefully, she pushed herself off the ground, and wiped her bleeding hand on her jeans. She kept her grip on the phone, and stood up straight, ignoring how sore she was from fighting off the three boys.

"Okay, lets try this again. Hi, my name's Damon Salvatore, a friendly non-serial-killer. What's your name?" the man said cheerfully as he stretched out his hand in front of her in an offer to shake hands.

"My name is Riley…Riley Matthews" she whispered. She offered her hand, and winced when she saw how bad her bruises looked. Damon saw them as well and frowned.

"Hello, Riley Riley Matthews. Now that we aren't strangers, why don't we sit down on that bench over there and eat some ice cream?" he said as he smiled kindly at her.

"Okay" she agrees, giving the man a small smile of her own.

"And while we're eating, you can tell me about how you got those wounds of yours…because you don't look so good"

* * *

 **God, those pesky three seniors are horrible! So Riley met Damon and some introductions were made. In the next chapter, ice cream is eaten and friendships are formed. Tune in next time! Please favorite and follow for more goodness. Also, please leave a review, and let me know what you think of the story so far! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed.**


	4. Challenge

**New chapter means new friends. Riley and Damon eat some ice cream, and talk about identity. Riley realizes something and Damon confesses something. Things are getting _real_ good. I'm satisfied with the way I wrote Damon, and I hope you guys like him as much as I do! Just to be clear, Damon is going to play a very large role in the story and in Riley's life so he's here to stay! Hope you guys enjoy!**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! ALSO, I DON'T THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO KEVIN WILLIAMSON, JULIE PLEC, AND THE CW! This story is a work of fiction.**

* * *

REALIZATION - challenge

 _After everything that just happened, this moment in time takes the cake for weirdest event today,_ Riley thought as she sat there with a tub of ice cream on top of her lap. She was laughing, and for the first time in a _long_ time, it was actual real laughter and not forced laughs coming out of her.

"Okay seriously, Phish Food is a disgrace to humanity" Damon argued, jokingly. The man, that up until a few minutes ago was a stranger, was sitting casually beside her with his own tub in one of his hands as they talked like longtime friends on one of the numerous benches found in Central Park.

It was sort of weird to Riley. She found herself so comfortable with Damon, as if any signs of danger seemed to vanish. He offered a certain type of safe aura that kept Riley at peace despite not knowing anything about the man. They literally spent about 10 minutes deciding on which Central Park bench was the best prime location for sitting, and right after, Riley was not impressed by Damon's choice of ice cream, making him go off to another ice cream vendor to buy her preferred flavor.

"What?! Phish Food is the best ice cream flavor that's ever existed. I know that, the whole of New York knows that, and I'm pretty sure God knows it as well!" Riley replied with a smile on her face. The two of them had started a fun little debate over which ice cream flavor was the best, and she was actually enjoying having this constant back and forth conversation with Damon.

"Yeah you're lying to yourself if you think that _Phish Food_ is the best thing ever, kid. I honestly feel bad for you because you've been tricked to thinking that, and you know what it is? It's the Justin Bieber. We ALL know that Half Baked is the real deal, its the Michael Jackson of ice creams! Like think about it, who wants some Justin Bieber ice cream when they can have Michael Jackson!? Boom your argument is invalid, and I have won" Damon said, smirking. Riley let out a giggle and accidentally snorted out some of the ice cream in her mouth.

"So what are you, an ice cream connoisseur? Is that why you're here in the middle of the afternoon? So that you can test your theory about ice cream flavors on a Central Park bench?" Riley teased.

"I'm here for the same reason why you're here" Damon said solemnly, changing the tone of the conversation altogether. Riley blushed and looked down to her arms; her bruises reminded her of what she ran away from. "I'm running away."

"What? What are you running away from?" she murmured as she kept her eyes down, avoiding Damon's face.

"Uh uh uh, I'm not answering any of your questions until you answer mine. Besides, those look like they hurt, lemme help you get those cleaned up" Damon said sternly as he gently picked up both of her hands and examined them. He shook his head and let out a sigh; Riley was embarrassed over the attention to detail the man was giving her and tried not to look directly at her own wounds. "Yup, these look bad. Wait here, I'm going to get some stuff to treat you with."

"W-wait, you really don't need to he-" Riley was cut off by Damon running away to get supplies. She let out a small laugh at the man's persistence and leaned back against the bench to look at the sky in an effort to distract her from the numbing pain coming from her arms.

 _What would dad think if he found out how I was skipping school, and eating ice cream with a stranger?,_ she thought to herself. She bets her father would absolutely go bonkers if he found out about her current predicament. Her mother, would be worse of course. She would never let Riley out of her sight ever again.

 _Who cares what they think? They're too busy noticing Maya, it won't be a surprise if all they greeted with you with today was news about that damn Triangle,_ a small voice at the back of her head argued. Riley shook her head as if to chase it away, but deep down in her heart, she knew that it was speaking the truth.

The brunette started smiling as she thought of the kindness Damon was showing her. She didn't even know the guy, but he was more friendly towards her than her friends were nowadays. She couldn't help but feel a sort of pull towards the man. He offered her a type of brotherly-love that she never knew she needed. If Riley was being completely honest, Damon actually reminded her of Maya. He was so proud and gave out this no-bullshit image, but like Maya, Riley was sure that he had something hidden behind his hard, confident look.

"Okay, I'm back! Here, give me your arms" Damon said, announcing his arrival. In his hand, he held a small plastic first aid box. He sat down and held Riley by the forearms. Carefully, he gently placed her arms on top of his lap, and began cleaning them with antiseptic. Riley bit her lip and winced at the sting of the cleaning medicine, and Damon gave her a small comforting smile.

"Why are you helping me anyways? I'm just girl you met in the park" Riley asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.

"You looked like you needed a friend" Damon answered honestly. Riley felt tears in her eyes, but she willed herself not to cry. What Damon was saying was true; she did need a friend, someone to confide in.

"But you're not my friend" she insisted. "Besides even if you were, why would you be MY friend? You seem like a nice guy, don't waste your time on girls like me"

"Here's the thing, kid. I'm not. I'm not a nice guy" Damon explained in a sad tone. He started to wrap her arms in bandages, and Riley smiled as she noticed him placing small butterfly band-aids on her split knuckles.

"Then why help me? You trying to prove something, Salvatore?" she challenged. Finally, Damon finished his task, and gave her an eye-roll. Riley was surprised because despite him treating her wounds, not once did he inquire about how they came to be. Truthfully, she was thankful that he seemed to pay no mind over the actual explanation of how she got them in the first place. She didn't think she could handle explaining it to him; it was still too early to say.

"No, I have my reasons just like how you have your own reasons, Matthews. I mean, you seem like a nice girl who should be surrounded by many friends, but here you are, sitting on a park bench, eating ice cream with a stranger" he said. Now, the two of them were locked in a heated game of stares, all other things were ignored. "Honestly, there's something about you."

"Me?"

"Yeah, I feel sort of drawn to you. And like not in a freaky pedophile kind of way, so you can relax about that. No…you seem so small, so unprotected. I keep getting this urge to wrap my arms around you and shield you from the world and all its fucked up ways" he finally let out. Riley gave him a wild look of shock at his words, but he just shrugged.

"Wow" Riley whispered, not able to form any coherent thought from her new friend's confession.

"Yeah…weird shit, right?" Damon chuckled at her questioning look.

"You really don't hold anything back don't you?" Riley giggled. She gathered that Damon constantly swore left and right, not even caring about who he was talking to.

"Me? Why should I? You're not a little girl, Matthews. I know you've heard people swearing and cursing before. Swear words are normal. It's about time you started learning to not give a shit about what other people thought about what you say" he replied. Riley's heart lifted at Damon's words. For the first time in her life, she had met someone who treated her as an equal, someone who didn't judge her. "Besides, you look like you need to let out a few words of your own."

"I mean…no…that's not me" she mumbled incoherently. No, she was Riley Matthews, all-around good girl, always doing the right thing, never said a bad thing in her life. Saying curse words was just not in her nature.

"Do you really know what does and what doesn't define you?" he replied with a raised eyebrow. Riley sighed; he was right. She didn't know who she really was yet, she's just been following everyone else's definition of who they wanted her to be. Her parents wanted her to be the good older-sister. Her father wanted her to be the star-student. Her friends wanted her to be old klutzy Riley, the girl who gave it her all. Even Lucas expected her to be Riley, his pretty brunette that knew right from wrong. She was tired of letting other people decide who she could and couldn't be. She wanted to be her own Riley Matthews, and she had a feeling that Damon would help her get to where she wanted to be.

"You're right….um…asshole?" she agreed, adding the word at the end to try to get used to the idea of swearing. She frowned for the word didn't feel right in her tongue yet. Damon let out a loud snort at her ending statement and patted her back endearingly.

"Yeah we'll work on that" he replied as he continued to chuckled over her attempt at cursing.

"What makes you think that I'm coming back here?" she teased. Riley couldn't help but doubt her newly formed friendship with the stranger she had just met.

"Because you don't seem like the type of girl who gives up on a challenge, and I'm definitely up for one, myself" he grinned as he stole some of the melting ice cream in the tub still lying on Riley's lap. Riley rolled her eyes at him and gave him a glare.

"So what, is this- am I a challenge to you?" she asked in a small voice. Riley liked Damon, and the idea of having someone she could trust, someone who didn't judge her based on previous notions, was enticing to her.

"Well, its also an excuse to eat ice cream in the afternoons so why not, right?" he answered as he started to pack away his first aid box. "I'm running away from my life, and something tells me that you are too. Why not run together?"

Riley looked at Damon, judging his words as he spoke. She really wanted to trust this man. Her heart told her that he was someone safe. She wanted to get to know Damon Salvatore, and she knew that the more time she spent with the guy, the more she'll find herself.

"Oh yeah and you owe me one anyways so the next time we meet, you're getting me some good ol' Half Baked" Damon said cheekily. Riley shook her head in joking disgust, and grinned back at him.

"Uh no way! I'm Phish Food all the way" she answered stubbornly.

"Just you wait, kid. I'm gonna change your whole world" Damon laughed as he spoke about their little ice cream debacle. He placed an arm around her shoulders, and together they laughed as they ate their melting ice cream in the middle of the cheeriness of Central Park.

Riley didn't know it yet, but she had a feeling that his statement would hold up in the long-run.

* * *

 **So there you go. Riley's made a friend in Damon, and Damon's found someone special in Riley. I really love writing them bickering, so expect more of this Riley/Damon interaction. Next up, the great ice cream debate continues, and Riley faces reality yet again! Please follow and favorite if you like the story, and if you can, please review, I need inspiration and it would also be nice to know how you guys like the story so far. Hope you guys enjoyed!**


	5. Freedom and Fear

**Okay so this chapter is kind of a filler chapter, if I have to say so myself. I just wanted to bring some more depth and story to the growing relationship between Riley and Damon. I really need you guys to understand that I'm trying to establish a strong trust and reliance to their friendship because believe me, its going to be important in the future chapters. So despite nothing really happening in this chapter, I hope you guys see how Damon and Riley get to know each other a little bit better. Also, in this chapter, ice creams are eaten, homework is answered, freedom is granted, and fear is introduced. I promise you, this story is about to get a whole lot intense by the end of this chapter alone. So please keep on reading.**

 **By the way, I'm sorry for not updating on a regular basis. I'm trying to write ahead of planned chapters so that I can have a whole lot of the story already in progress, but don't you worry, I have this story all planned and written out. I'll try to post more regularly, like twice or three times a week!**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! ALSO, I DON'T THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO KEVIN WILLIAMSON, JULIE PLEC, AND THE CW! This story is a work of fiction.**

* * *

REALIZATION - freedom and fear

"Hey, Tiny Riley!" Damon greeted Riley as she approached the bench he was sitting on. They had deemed the small green bench located in the middle of Central Park as "their adventure bench." In fact, Riley had been meeting Damon in that same bench everyday for about 3 weeks, and each time she came, Damon always greeted her with a tub of ice cream.

" _Is that thing poisoned?" Riley asked Damon the second time they met each other in the park. She eyed the tub of ice cream he was holding out to her with reasonable suspicion._

 _"_ _If I wanted to murder a little girl, I wouldn't do it in a park around witnesses" Damon smirked as she raised an eyebrow at him. "Besides, I actually want to eat this ice cream, and if I poisoned it, I wouldn't be able to eat any of this deliciousness"_

 _"_ _And I'm here because?" she asks as she watches Damon pat on the seat beside him, motioning her to sit down. Riley stood her ground in front of him and crossed her arms, still unsure of the man._

 _"_ _Because I bought an entire tub of ice cream and I am not going to be able to finish it by myself" he says as he places two spoons into the tub. "Come on, I hope you like Rocky Road"_

 _"_ _Fine…but you're helping me with my homework because I just got done with school" she agreed as she took her seat beside Damon and started eating ice cream._

That was how their tradition started, just the two of them sitting on their adventure bench talking about life and random things. Two strangers slowly becoming friends.

Sitting on that bench, the two talked about anything and everything. Damon learned more about Riley's life; she told him about her friends, her life, the undying eternal love story that is _Corpanga,_ and she even told him about the 'Triangle.' Basically, she told Damon everything, all her insecurities and all her flaws. With Damon, she felt secure, she felt weightless. All the weight hanging on her shoulders disappeared whenever she conversed with Damon.

Damon, on the other hand, was a tough cookie to break. Despite his easygoing attitude, Damon held a lot of secrets, he carried an immense amount of emotional baggage, and Riley just knew he had so much pent up emotion in him. It was the way he would react to things she would say, how his eyes would flicker and show some melancholic feelings in them before shifting and looking back at her with mischievous happiness. Riley even noticed how his face would change whenever he thought she wasn't looking; he always got this faraway look on him, as if he was consciously worried over something or someone too far from his reach. Yet still, Riley was able to get him to share about where he was from, a town called Mystic Falls, and his friends.

Riley still had this inkling of a feeling telling her that he was hiding something, something big. She had heard him mention a couple of names in a hushed tone. Names like "Stefan", and "Elena" always came out with a sense of sadness emitting from his voice.

"What's up, nugget? What have you got for me today?" Damon said as Riley took her place beside him on the bench. Riley rolled her eyes at the nickname and grabbed the spoon from his hand. Damon had started this little game of making up nicknames for Riley. She, however, thought his attempts were stupid but a little sweet; they proved how much Damon was starting to care about her.

"Algebra, ugh" Riley answered as she shoved the spoonful of ice cream in her mouth whilst grabbing her notebook from her inside her bag. She plopped the papers on the bench, between both of her bodies. Damon chuckled as she started to do her homework. Recently, she started to do her homework with Damon instead of at Topanga's. In fact, she had somewhat avoided her mother's bakery at all costs these past few weeks. She knew that her _friends_ would be there, and she couldn't handle their constant scrutiny.

Tensions have been at an all-time high. Riley even surmised that it was much worse than what had happened with the ' _Triangle'_ when it first reared its head in the group. Everyone from the _Clique Six_ was urging her and begging her to talk but she could barely say a word to any of them, even Farkle. She just had nothing to say to them; she was done being their scapegoat. She was tired of lying to them, lying to herself. She was trying to find her own person, trying to grow without people pushing her down. But despite her silence, they didn't stop trying.

Just two days ago, Maya even tried to apologize, in her own way. Riley let out a snort as she remembered that particular event.

 _The bell rang, signaling all the high school students that they were finally free of school. Riley sighed as she stood up from her chair. At the front of the class, her dad was shouting some reminder to the class about their reading assignment. Her classmates were hastily fixing their things and rushing out the door. She, herself, was calmly stuffing her books back into her backpack, and at the same time, she was excited to go to Damon at the park so she could relay the events that happened that day._

 _"_ _RILEY! Wait up, honey!" a voice said from behind her. Riley gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. Her insides froze as she tried to calm herself enough to have a decent conversation with her supposed best friend, whom she hadn't talked to in almost 2 weeks entirely._

 _"_ _Maya" she greeted back as she turned to face the petite blonde. Maya looked at her with furrowed brows and gave her a small grin to try to lighten the mood, this did not help._

 _"_ _Soooo I just noticed that you haven't been hanging out with us after school" Maya continued. Riley rolled her eyes._

 _'_ _Oh, you just noticed? I haven't been hanging out with you for weeks!'_ Riley thought to herself. She could feel herself getting angry but reigned herself in, out of respect to her former friend.

 _"_ _Yeah, sorry about that. Things have been busy. Auggie just lost his babysitter and mom's too busy to find a new one so I've been helping out with him these past few days" Riley lied. Maya nodded in return, accepting the lie as if it wasn't a completely dumb excuse._

 _"_ _Well I guess I just wanted to tell you something since you haven't been around" Maya said in a somewhat accusing tone. Riley narrowed her eyes at the blonde's choice of words but she let her friend continue. "Uh I don't really know how to say this, but you're Riley so you've always been okay with these type of things…but um its me and Lucas now."_

 _Its me and Lucas now._

 _Its me and Lucas now._

 _Its me and Lucas now._

 _With those five words, Riley could feel her heart shattering into pieces. Her head started spinning and she could see those blue eyes, Lucas' kind eyes, fading away from her, disappearing into darkness. Her blonde prince, her subway boy, the kind-hearted future veterinarian was gone, slipping away from her grasp and falling into the arms of the girl with blonde hair. She had lost him. She had lost. She knew what those five words really meant though._

 _Its me and Lucas now….not you. Never you._

 _As Riley swallowed the lump of sadness that was catching in her throat, Maya continued to talk, "Yeah it feels weird saying it out loud. Can't you believe it? Me and Huckleberry? Who knew? Anyways, it was all thanks to you. After everything that happened two weeks ago, me and Texas boy had a talk, and he finally got his head on straight. Wow, I still can't believe it actually happened, you know? And I know, you'll be fine with it, you're Riley. I knew I could count on you"_

 _The dam broke, and Riley couldn't help but shout, "THEN STOP!"_

 _"_ _What? Riles?"_

 _"_ _STOP COUNTING ON ME! I'M TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT YOU YOU YOU. ABOUT YOU AND LUCAS. ABOUT HOW HAPPY YOU ARE! HOW DARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU EVEN APPROACH ME AS IF I'M YOUR FRIEND?! AND ESPECIALLY ABOUT THIS TOPIC, ABOUT HIM?! YOU OF ALL PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW BETTER! YOU KNEW SINCE THE START! YOU KNEW THAT I LIKED HIM! You knew how much I dreamt of Lucas, of being with him! You held me as I cried over him. You knew I put up with this goddamn Triangle because you know how I act, how I wouldn't let you or Lucas get hurt. You let it happen, you used me and my love for BOTH of you to get the guy, to get your prize. You knew. You know you've won. You've done it, Maya. You've finally won everything your heart has ever desired. But guess what? You might have won the guy…but you've lost me. I'm done with you. Congratulations, I hope you're both happy" Riley said tearfully. By the time she ended her great speech, she had tears running freely down her cheeks. She let out a calming sigh, and gave Maya one last look._

 _In front of her, the blonde girl stood stock still. Her mouth was wide open, and her eyes were wide as she stared at the brunette. Riley finally let out everything she had felt._

 _She turned away from the shocked blonde and walked away from the classroom. Thankfully, the halls were clear of teenagers as they had already gone home. With her bag clutched tight in her hand, she walked towards the end of the hall. She had tears on her cheeks, and a smile on her face. She wasn't crying out of loss and heartbreak. She was crying for joy, for freedom. She was becoming her own woman._

"Hey, you know you won that day" Damon muttered as he poked her nose, interrupting her from her memory. Riley squinted her eyes at him and shrugged as she continued on with her homework.

"How did you even know that I was thinking about that?" she asked.

"Because I like to think that I know you by now" he answered, cockily. Riley poked her tongue out at him and he shrugged. "But really…you may have thought you lost the boy, nugget. In reality, you won that day"

"How so?" she murmured curiously as she slouched over to get a closer look at one of the problems in her notebook.

"Because…you won your happiness. You're not the sad girl I met three weeks ago, you look like you're about to grow wings and fly off into the sunset" he responded as he grabbed the pencil from her hand and began making the necessary corrections on her solutions.

"I feel free" she said simply. Riley looked up from her slouched position and gave Damon a content smile. She was rewarded by him reaching up and ruffling her hair. She rolled her eyes at him and whined about ruining her hair, but deep down she was happy at the action. It made her feel loved.

"Okay now that you're free, lemme just tell you how much you suck at math" Damon said out of the blue, changing the topic and lifting the mood of the conversation. He began pointing out all her mistakes, and Riley pouted at all his smartass language.

"And in number three, the answer's 25 not 15, jeez kid" he finished. Damon shoves more ice cream in his mouth before he grins and wraps his arm around her shoulders.

"Whatever, I can be stupid; I'm only in 9th grade! How old are you, anyways?" she teases as she closes her notebook and puts it away. She feels Damon tense up beside her and looks at him with questioning eyes. Damon grows quiet and his expression grows grim as he looks away from her and stares at the tree in front of the bench they're sitting on. "Hey what's wrong, Damon?"

Damon sighs and knocks his shoulder against hers before beginning to talk, "I'm a lot older than you, kiddo. Believe me."

"Okay is this some type of superiority thing? Like I know you're older than me but you don't look _that_ old" Riley joked, trying to bring some humor into the conversation. "Besides, do you not want me to know? Is this part of your ploy to somehow kidnap me?"

"That's enough, Tiny. I'm not trying to hide my age. I'll tell you all about the elusive Damon Salvatore soon, just not now" he replied.

"Ugh, enough with that nickname! I am not _that_ small! Besides, if you keep up with that nickname, then I'm going to start calling you ' _Whiny'._ Yeah that sounds right! Tiny and Whiny" she giggled as she stole Damon's sunglasses from the pocket of his leather jacket.

"Hey! I don't whine, you little shit!" Damon complained as he tried to grab his sunglasses back. The two started to attract attention from random bystanders as they playfully fought over the sunglasses.

"Okay okay oh my gosh, I give I give! Let me live!" Riley surrendered while Damon tickled her sides. She throws the sunglasses into his lap and continues giggling as he ruffles her hair even more.

"God you're so annoying. Next time, you aren't getting any of my Blueberry Swirl" Damon huffs playfully as he slides his glasses onto his face. Riley chuckles and uses the back of her hand to slap his chest. She winces in slight pain and draws back her hand to cradle it to her chest.

Damon eyes her worriedly as she rubs her hand. She still had wounds that were healing on her hands, they were not as obvious as before, but she still wore sweaters with really long sleeves in order to hide her cuts and bruises.

"Hey how are the hands?" he asks her. Riley shook her head and pulled away from his reach, not wanting him to see her wounds. They embarrassed her, made her feel weak. Even though he was the one who treated them, she still didn't want Damon to bring attention to her wounds. "You know you still haven't explained what had happened that day."

"I'll tell you all about it when you tell me about yourself" she mutters. Riley gives him a meaningful look, a look that practically begs him not to push the conversation. He shrugs and acquiesces to her pleading. "Anyways, its about time I go. Gotta go babysit my brother."

"Let me bring you home" Damon suggests. He shoves a couple of spoonfuls into his mouth before throwing the tub away.

"No, its fine. Don't you worry, I live near so I don't need a bodyguard" she joked.

"Its getting late, and I'm a gentleman. A good gentleman doesn't let a young girl walk home alone at night especially in these New York city streets" he reasoned. Riley smiled in appreciation but shook her head.

"Nope, its the 21st century and young girls like me don't need 'good gentleman' like you to help us get around. I swear you're so old fashioned, its like you're from the 1800s or something. See ya, whiny." Riley waved goodbye as she started to walk away, leaving Damon standing alone by the bench and staring after her.

"You have no idea, kid…no idea" he murmurs, placing his hands in his pockets and looking up at the sky.

Suddenly, a sharp wind hits him smack on the face and Damon tenses up. He opens his eyes and grits his teeth. There, in front of him, stood a young man in a black trench coat. He looked about the same age as Damon, and he wore a smirk on his face, a look similar to that of Damon's signature mischievous grin. But somehow this man looked more dangerous, _more sinister._

A scent spreads through the air, and Damon's hands turn to fists in his pockets as he realizes what the familiar scent is. Its blood, really fresh blood. Damon's eyes darken but he fights the urge to bare his teeth. He focuses again on the man in front of him and growls. The unwanted guest has blood dripping down from his hands.

"So, who's your new friend, Salvatore?" the man asks. There is an underlying evil hidden in his voice, but Damon tries to not let that get in his head. His undead heart feels as if it was about to start beating in panic but Damon reigns it in and schools himself. He musters up all his attention and replies in a completely calm voice.

"Hello, Max."

* * *

 **Oh no, who's Max!? Guys, if only you could see what I have in store for all of y'all. Just prepare yourselves, its about to get freaky from this point onwards. Riley's world is about to get turned upside down, and you have the privilege to see it happen. The next few chapters are really going integrate more of the Vampire Diaries ideas into the story so get ready for that. Please favorite and follow for more goodness! Also, please leave me a review, and let me know what you think of the story so far! I'm open to new suggestions as well! Hope you guys enjoyed!**


	6. Lies, Truth, and Pain

**OH HELLO THERE! The story is picking up. No Damon in this chaper but believe me he's gonna be back soon! In this chapter, a new mysterious character is introduced, Riley and Auggie's relationship is explored, lies are told, truth comes out, Riley explodes, debris falls, and Riley comes face to face with fear. Oh guys, I'm so excited for y'all to read this chapter. I really went back-and-forth with how Riley would finally explode to her parents. Please don't hate me; I really love Corpanga, and I never meant for them to be negative characters in this story but their ignorance is key to Riley's growth. Hope you enjoy!**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! ALSO, I DON'T OWN THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO KEVIN WILLIAMSON, JULIE PLEC, AND THE CW! This story is a work of fiction.**

* * *

REALIZATION - lies, truth, and pain

Riley took a deep breath to calm herself before entering her house. She felt her heart sink as she thought, ' _This is my home. This is my home. This is my home.'_

She continued chanting the saying as she made her way up the stairs of the apartment complex. She greeted Mrs. Greene, the kind old lady living across from their place, as they passed each other.

"Hiya Mrs. Greene" Riley smiled warmly at her neighbor. The old lady gave her a smile in return.

"You look different, Riley Matthews, but remember with truth, comes pain" she said in a soft voice that Riley almost did not catch.

"I'm sorry but what do you mean by that, Ma'm?" Riley asked politely, stopping to look back at the old woman's form as she continued to walk away.

"Oh you don't think I haven't noticed, deary? Finally dropped the Friar boy for good now, didn't you?" the old woman chuckled as if she was laughing at some inside joke. Riley cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow at the woman's odd behavior.

"What? Uh.. how did you even know about Lu-?"

"I have my ways, young one" Riley bit her lip in confusion but she let the old woman continue, "We all get the love we think we deserve, but Riley dear, you deserve better, you're meant for greater things."

Riley stood there, in the middle of the hallway, in shocked silence as she watched her aging neighbor walk back into her house. Riley, being the sweet girl she was ever since she was born, had always accepted that her neighbor was a little bit weird at times. Whenever the girl was babysitting her younger brother, she had noticed that some strange people would frequently visit her old neighbor. Riley thought that was definitely bizarre because for as long as she could remember, Mrs. Greene didn't have any relatives that were living. Her husband had died a few decades ago, and they never bore any children. Plus, Mrs. Greene was a sweet woman, the kind of person who'd offer cupcakes and cookies to Riley and Auggie when they were playing around in the hallways of their apartment building. On the other hand, the people who frequented her home looked freaky. They didn't have tentacles nor did they wear unorthodox clothes; they had just some dangerous aura revolving around them. Also, they never stayed long when they came to visit, and they never returned. The average visitor usually came and left before an hour had passed. It was just strange, simply not normal.

Riley shook her head, and tried to pry herself away from thinking too much on the subject. She liked Mrs. Greene, and whatever was happening with her neighbor was none of her business. It was times like this that Riley had the brains to not be her usual curious self; some things were just better left unnoticed.

The brunette sighed and opened the door to her family's home. She smiled once she noticed that Auggie was already sat on the dinner table waiting for her. He had so kindly heated up the leftover Mac N' Cheese, and he greeted her with an excited smile.

"Hey Auggs!" she grinned at her brother. Her heart melted for her little brother. He was one of the only people she didn't hide anything from, and although he was younger than her, he stood up for her when she needed him the most. They were allies, and best friends.

"Riley Riley Riley! Its Mac N' Cheese night!" he yelled enthusiastically. Riley chuckled at her brother's excitement and crossed the room to take her seat at the table.

"So how was school?" she asked as they started eating their meal. Auggie pouted at her at the mention of school.

"It was okay, I guess. We read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Ms. Grace's class" he replied while shoving noodles in his mouth. Riley snorted at her brother's action, and lovingly wiped away the dripping cheese at the side of his mouth.

"Okay. Thanks for waiting up for me. Sorry I came home late" Riley apologized. "Don't tell mom and dad, got it?"

Auggie nodded; he was very loyal to his sister. He practically idolized his older sister, thinking of her as a role model. One thing Riley really liked about her brother was that he knew how to keep a secret.

"Its okay, I won't tell mommy and daddy. Look, I even did my homework while waiting for you! Where were you anyways? Mommy and Daddy tried to calling you awhile ago" he narrowed his eyes at her.

"By the way, where are they?" Riley asked, choosing not to answer her brother's question. She hadn't told anyone about Damon or their meetings in the park. Riley looked around and noticed that her dad's suitcase was not placed by the door and neither were her mom's stuff. Usually, when her parents went on their dates, they left their work things around before going out. Riley found it unusual that this was not the case today.

"Something came up. Mommy said that it was important" Auggie answered. Riley frowned at his statement, and quietly thought of reasons as to why her parents went out in such a haste. Also, Auggie bit his lip, something usually did when he was keeping something. He was hiding something that was related to their parents' absence.

Together, the two silently washed the dishes. Riley kept stealing glances at her younger brother, who kept fidgeting, as if he was bursting to tell something.

"Hey Auggs. I know you're lying. If you don't spill the beans, you're not getting the chance to watch Captain Color tonight" Riley threatened. She quickly switched to the role of strict older sister, knowing that her brother wouldn't stand a chance this time.

"What? No! That's not fair!" he protested. Finally, the two of them finished putting away the dishes, and sat down on the couch. Riley gripped the television remote in her hand, and waved it temptingly at Auggie. She smirked as he continued pouting at her.

Her little brother groaned and threw his small hands in the air, "Okay okay, I give! They went to Topanga's!"

Riley's eyes widened at her sibling's confession. Her head filled with confusion. Why would her parents go to Topanga's?

Wordlessly, she handed the remote to her brother, who rejoiced and started flipping the channels to his favorite show. Riley, on the other hand, was paying no mind to the show; she was too busy thinking about her parents.

Suddenly, the door opened and her parents walked into the living room. Auggie turned off the television, and jumped up to greet his parents with a hug. Riley stayed on the couch, and turned to give her parents a small meek smile instead.

Things with her parents were strained. They knew of what had happened between her and her _friends_ but there were a lot of things that she hadn't told them. In fact, she hasn't told her parents anything for a long time. She couldn't tell them about the _Triangle,_ about the three seniors, and especially not about _Damon._ Cory and Topanga were perfect, and Riley didn't want to disappoint her parents. She didn't want to show them that she was a failure; their perfect daughter was falling apart and even though, they were partly to blame for that, she still had hope that they were still the family that she needed. _The family who accepted her._

"Hey, bubba, were you watching Captain Color?" her dad asked as he lifted Auggie into his arms and tossed him playfully back onto the couch.

"No the more important question here is did you finish your reading, Auggie?" their mom asked as she walked around the living room, picking up and putting away toys that were lying around the room.

Riley kept her eyes on her mom and couldn't help but look at the lawyer longingly. Her mother walked around with a certain glide and grace to her step. Whenever she walked into a room, her very being commanded attention. She was praised, _oh how she was praised!_ Topanga Lawrence-Matthews was a force to be reckoned with, and ever since Riley was young, she completely adored her mother. Riley practically craved to embody everything her mother stood for. Topanga was everything; beautiful, headstrong, smart, the perfect wife, the perfect mom. To Riley, her life goal was to make her mother proud.

 _But then you aren't anything special,_ a voice sneered from the depths of her head. _Your mother's prize isn't you…its Maya Penelope Hart. That's her daughter, the blonde headstrong girl. The girl, the artist. And you? You're nothing, you have no talent. No wonder Maya's the warrior, and you're the daydreamer. That's all you're good for, daydreaming!_

Riley blinked through her tears; the voice in her head continued taunting and it grew more wicked with every insult.

 _How could your mother love you?! You're a liar! Look at those wounds and bruises on your arms and hands. YOU DESERVE THEM! You're nothing but a -_

"Riley? Are you okay?" Cory asked, eyeing his daughter. Riley looked like she had seen a ghost. She had grown pale, and her eyes were glassy, as if she was close to tears. Her hands gripped the edges of her sweater's sleeves to pull them further down.

"Wha-? What? Oh, um, I'm okay…sorry, I'm just tired" she lied, giving her father a smile. She could tell that her father didn't believe her excuse, and he continued to give her a worried glance.

"So how was the babysitting?" her father asked suddenly changing the subject. Riley bit her lip, and struggled to swallow the lump in her throat. She hated lying to her parents, and tonight, she felt as if lies were flying out of her mouth left to right.

"Um it was okay? Auggie was good and did his homework; I just watched some Red Planet Diaries on the couch" she lied again. Her parents looked at her with high suspicion.

"And what were you doing before you got home?" her mother asked. Riley scratched her head and steeled her nerves in preparation to lie again. She knew she couldn't tell her parents about Damon; for some reason, she wanted Damon to be a secret. He was the only person she could rely on nowadays, and she wanted to keep what they had sacred. Even though, she didn't really know _what_ they had.

Like if her parents found out she was spending her afternoons with a much-older stranger, she would never see the light of day ever again.

"Went to Topanga's. Did my homework, and Farkle helped me answer Algebra." By the time Riley finished saying her piece, she realized her mistake. Her parents were at Topanga's, and they knew she wasn't there. She had been lying so profusely that she didn't even think about if her alibi was believable. Her parents gave her the we-know-you're-lying look, and she sighed, mentally surrendering herself to her would-be punishment.

 _Oh shit._ Her eyes widening at her own thoughts; she's been around Damon so much that she's picking up his impolite way of talking.

"Riley! Give it up. We know you're lying. We were at the bakery awhile ago, and you were definitely not there" her father said in his strict voice, the one he usually uses on kids in detention. Riley bit her lip nervously; her father never used that tone with her, and she was so screwed.

"Riley, I am _so_ disappointed in you! How could you even lie to us? We didn't raise you like that!" her mother reprimanded. Her voice was strong and clear, her eyes blazing with fire; she embodied the lawyer she was in court. "And the fact that _now_ we know you've been going _god knows where_ after school these past few weeks!"

Riley sat on the couch. She kept her eyes trained on her parents. She didn't have anything to say, she didn't want to disappoint them even further.

"Sweetheart, you have to help us here! We don't know what's going on with you. You barely talk to us. Your father says that you haven't been participating in class" her mother's voice grew incredulous, as if she, herself, couldn't believe her daughter's actions.

"Honey, you're grades are as good as ever but in class, its like I'm lecturing with a ghost" her father explained. He looked at her, begging her to explain her actions, but she remained silent, numb.

"And don't get me started with what's happening with your friends! We had to talk to them this afternoon and we learnt about what's been going on with your group since you won't even tell us anything" her mother scolded. Topanga paced in front of her and kept giving her accusing glares. Riley squirmed at her mother's actions; she really hated upsetting the woman.

"Honey, you know you can always talk to us. You didn't have to scream at your friends" Cory added. He sat down on the handrest of the couch and looked down at her. The young girl looked up at her father and shrugged.

"We heard about Lucas and Maya. We know how you liked him, but Riley, you really hurt Maya by pushing her away. You know, she needs a friend" Topanga argued. Cory nodded and reached down to pat his daughter on the head but Riley froze.

 _There she goes again! Look at them, Matthews. They're taking Maya's side. Oh you poor thing, no one cares about you. Not. Even. Your. Own. Parents.,_ the treacherous voice whispered.

Before Cory's hand could even lay a single finger on his daughter's head, Riley flinched away and stood up. The action alone would have given her whiplash but the fire in her soul burned and ignited her words, giving her determination.

"Oh? She needs a friend?! Oh poor Maya? She's so sad, and so helpless. She got the boy, she got the friends, and you what else she got?! SHE GOT THE PARENTS AS WELL. You know what why don't you go and call her Maya Penelope Matthews if you really empathize with how she feels! But no, she's not your daughter. Not perfect, talented, beautiful Maya. Instead you got stupid, childish Riley. Did you even stop to think about what _I need?_ If you know how I felt about Lucas, because you claim to say you do, then why are you still taking _her_ side? I loved him, and _she got him._ Now you're saying that she needs a friend? What about me? I needed a friend too! I needed _my parents._ I needed my parents when I realized that my best friend in the whole entire world was falling for the guy I was in love with. I needed my parents when I fought with my friends. I needed my parents when those asshole seniors started tormenting me! I needed my parents when I got these wounds!" Finally, Riley shoved the sleeves of her sweater up to her shoulders and exposed the scars and scratches she still had on her arms. Her parents gasped, horrified at the sight of her red, raw arms. They couldn't believe that Riley was hurt and they were too distracted to notice.

"I had no one! _I have no one now!"_ Riley whispered in a defeated tone. Her parents stand still in front of her. "I'm no okay. I'm _so so_ tired. Tired of fighting a losing battle. Tired of pretending. Tired of lying. Tired of trying. I'm never going to be enough for anyone. Not even my parents."

Auggie stands by the door. Tears are sliding down his cheeks. He yearns to wrap his arms around his older sister. He wanted to make everything better. He wanted to kiss her cheek and tell her that the monsters she was facing within her would go away; this was what his parents told him about the monsters in his closet. For some reason, he just knew that his older sister was experiencing something he couldn't even comprehend due to his youth.

Topanga lifted her hand to try to reach out to her daughter, but Riley took a step back in defense. Everyone in the room was in tears because of the outburst.

Cory and Topanga knew that Riley was right. She was right about everything. They had failed her as parents. They had let their poor baby girl get hurt. They were blind to what Riley felt, and it was all honestly their fault.

However, Riley felt ashamed and embarrassed. She didn't mean for so much to burst out from her. Despite everything she had said, she still worried about her parents.

"You know, all I've ever wanted was for you guys to see me, for you guys to be proud of me. But my whole life, you've always seen her." Riley said in a monotone voice. She used the back of her hand to wipe away the tears, and walked towards the main door, where Auggie stood. He looked at her with those precious big brown eyes, once full of wonder now filled with despair and worry for his sister.

Riley loved Auggie so much. He was her ally. But he was too young, and she didn't want him, of all people, to get hit from the crossfire between her and her parents. She was too damaged, and the war going on inside of her was burning everyone around her. She would not let Auggie lose his happiness.

The girl bent her knees and squatted in front of her little brother. She placed her hand on his cheek, and used her thumb to wipe away any stray tears that had fallen. With all the strength she could muster, she gave the young boy a smile, one that didn't reach her eyes.

"Where are you going?" he whispered.

"I'll be back soon" she answered in a soft loving voice. Behind her, she could feel her parents gazes on her back, but she remained unperturbed.

"Why?" his small voice broke her heart, and she wanted nothing more but to wrap her arms around him and hold his tiny frame against her.

"This place…" Riley muttered while she stood up. She gave Auggie a pat on his head, and turned back around to face her parents. She gave them a heartbreaking smile before looking around the living room. In this room, she had once felt safe, and happy. Now, it looked too happy for her broken soul. She couldn't stomach the colors and smells of the apartment. She belonged with the darkness.

"It doesn't feel like home anymore", and with that, she calmly exited the room, and ran down the stairs. Because she was so distracted, she did not notice the old lady watching her making her descent down the stairs.

"Run to greater things, my dear. Run with haste" Mrs. Greene whispered.

She continued running until her feet met the New York City street pavement. Her heart felt weightless. Everything she had to hide, now out in the open. No more secrets to hide. No more lies.

But with the truth came pain. Her life was now in ruins. Her family probably hated her now. She had disappointed everyone she had ever loved, and there was no coming back from that.

So she kept running. Her feet carried her to the only place her sane mind thought of when it came to security. The park bench.

It was midnight. Darkness surrounded her. She pushed past the people walking in the sidewalk. Ignoring the traffic, she sprinted towards Central Park. Inside, she prayed that somehow Damon would be there. She needed him to be there. Needed the peace he brought with him.

She came to a halt once she entered the park's vicinity. Her heart was beating profusely, and her legs were shaking with adrenaline but she forced herself to calm down. Anxiously, she walked over to the familiar bench, and her heart nearly stopped beating at what she saw. She stopped moving entirely and just looked at what was in front of her.

Sitting on the bench was a man. Due to the darkness, Riley could barely make out the man's silhouette, but her entire being went on high alert because although she couldn't see clearly, she was sure of two things.

The man sitting on their bench was definitely not Damon Salvatore.

And the bench he was sitting on was covered in blood.

* * *

 **What the hell is going on!? WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN NOW?! Haha Riley finally _finally_ told her parents everything, and there will be consequences. Sorry to leave y'all in a cliffhanger. Tune in next time to find out what happens to Riley. Next chapter should be up either at the end of this week or next week after Christmas. Please favorite and follow for some more goodness! Also, please leave a review and lemme know what you think of the story so far. Any suggestions? Any ideas? Any violent reactions? But seriously, it helps when you guys comment because it lets me know that I'm writing this story for a reason. Anyways, Merry Christmas! Hope you enjoyed reading!**


	7. Darkness and Forgiveness

**HEY GUYS! So so sorry for the long wait; things in my personal life have been a little bit hectic. BUT I promise y'all that I'm staying dedicated to this story no matter what. In this week's edition, Riley meets the infamous Max and things take a turn to the supernatural side (ooooh). Basically, Riley meets mystery and darkness. Anyways, hope you guys enjoy this story. To be honest, it is progressing at a really steady pace so please please stick around because things are about to get even crazier! Please read and enjoy at your own leisure.**

 **TIMELINE OF THE STORY:**

 **\- GMW: Season 3, post-Girl Meets High School, before Girl Meets Triangle. Riley is 14.**

 **\- TVD: Season 3, but Season 4 never happened completely. Elena is in a vampire-coma, Klaroline happened. Klaus is a hybrid. The Originals went to New Orleans. Stefan and Damon still love Elena.**

 **I DON'T OWN GIRL MEETS WORLD OR ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO MICHAEL JACOBS AND DISNEY! ALSO, I DON'T OWN THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO KEVIN WILLIAMSON, JULIE PLEC, AND THE CW! This story is a work of fiction.**

* * *

REALIZATION - darkness and forgiveness

There had been times in Riley's life wherein she'd felt her whole body go on high alert. It was like when she thought that she had failed her math exam (which she of course ended up acing), or like the time she panicked right after Farkle announced to the whole class about her love for Lucas. This time, though, was different. Riley could practically see the red lights shining at her in her head.

The silhouette sat a mere twelve feet away from her, and all was silent. She could hear the wind blaring through the leaves of the trees, and the distance honking of traffic from a distance, but she kept her entire focus on the figure in front of her.

Using her observational skills, Riley quickly inspected the man despite of the darkness. He was tall, and extremely pale. His hair was reddish-brown, and his face was hidden away by the shadow of the tree beside the bench.

 _The bench._

The hair on Riley's arms stood as her attention drew back to the blood dripping from the bench to the cement ground.

"Hello, you must be Riley, Damon's new plaything" a voice emerged from the darkness. It was shrouded with sinister glee, which made Riley uncomfortable. She did not want to answer back, but a voice in her head told her to say something.

"Who are you?" she asked meekly. Her voice trembled in uncertainty. The man's shoulders shook as if he were laughing silently.

"A friend of Damon's, darling" he answered as he stood up from the bloody bench. Gracefully, he wiped off the red liquid all over his hands, and patted them against his thighs for good measure. What shocked Riley the most about the action was how nonchalantly he reacted towards the blood, as if he's not bothered by the sight of the redness at all.

"Where is he then?" she demanded, her voice growing in confidence yet her arms still shook. "And what do you want?"

By the time she had uttered the last word to her question, a blast of air hit her smack on the face, making her rub at her eyes due to the sudden wind. She opened her eyes and let out a squeak for the man who was standing twelve feet away had somehow managed to cross the distance between them and ended up right in front of her. She could practically feel his cold breath fanning the top of her head. His aura screamed dangerous, and Riley cringed as she lifted her head to finally look at the stranger eye-to-eye. Her eyes widened when she came face to face with the man.

He was beautiful.

Auburn hair cut to his shoulders, and golden stud earrings on his ears; his beauty was blinding, and it seemed unreal, ethereal. His jaw was one seen on the cover of magazines, and he had the complexion of a runway model. He looked too beautiful to be real. Almost like he was a sculpture in a museum, using his beauty to distract the people from the darkness inside him. He was unreal, and something about him did not sit well with Riley.

If Riley had thought he was pale when he was a few feet away from her, now she had to admit that he was almost too pale to be human, which was weird. He looked as if the blood running through his veins had not been circulating around his body. And his eyes! They were red. Not pale red nor were they brown-red, they were spot-on crimson red.

"Wha-what? How did you do that?! You were all the way-" Riley said. She couldn't believe how the man moved in impossible speed. Suddenly, while she was still speaking, the man lifted his hand, and with the back of his palm, stroked her cheek. Riley grew silent, and she grew breathless at the random action. The man's hand was cold, and she flinched away at the touch. Something about his touch gave Riley the ultimate creeps. The touch reminded her of the hands of her tormentors back in school. _Malicious intent._

"You…you're different" he whispered. His eyes grew wide like he had finally noticed something, and he gave Riley a head-to-toe look, inspecting her. The attention the man gave to her freaked her out, and she tried to get the man's hand away from her cheek, but he quickly gripped the back of her neck and pulled her head towards him, forcing her to retain eye-contact. Their position was quite awkward in a sense; he was obviously taller than her, the top of her head was just below where his neck met his collar bone. Riley stood on her toes and looked at the man's dark eyes. She felt the ground disappear from underneath her feet and glanced down quickly just to realize that the man had lifted her off the cement floor using the grip he had on her neck. His strength was unlike she had seen from anyone before.

Everything about this man screamed unnatural. Everything about him yelled danger.

Riley bit her tongue to stop her from saying something to provoke the man, and whimpered as the man's nails dug into the back of her neck. Now they were eye-to-eye, and the look the man was giving her was intense and intimidating. He gave her body one more quick inspection, and brought her closer to his face until she could feel his cold breath on her lips. Riley's eyes widened as the man smirked at her. A couple of strands of her hair fell onto her face, cutting their intense staring contest, and the man blew away the hair with one puff of air from his mouth. Riley shivered at the coolness and waited for the man to speak.

"You're a wise little girl, aren't you? You know when you're in trouble" he whispered, and as he spoke, his eyes seemed to grow darker and darker until they were almost jet black. Riley's eyes widened and she strained her neck to pull away from the man but he used his free hand to tilt her chin towards his gaze, locking her in place. "How foolish of you, girl…To believe every word Salvatore puts into your head. He's not who you think he is"

Riley glared at the man's obvious insult towards her friend. She used her hands to punch the man in the chest as hard as she could, but though she wasn't weak at all, her punches seemed to hold no effect on the man. He barely even noticed that she was trying to get free.

"You have no idea…how dangerous it is to be around _our_ kind" he said, finishing his speech. The veins on his face began protruding and he opened his mouth a little to show razor sharp teeth popping out from his gums. Riley's eyes widened as the image of the beautiful man turned into one of a horrifying monster.

"W-what are you?!" she mumbled in fear. Her heart began to race and she felt her stomach twist and turn. The monster smirked at her, and shook it's head playfully, like it was playing some sort of game. His eyes were blood red and she felt the grip on her neck pierce into her skin, blood flowing down the back of her neck and seeping into the collar of her shirt.

"Sweetheart, I'm just like your friend, Damon" the man growled. His voice, no longer velvet-like and smooth, instead it was a mixture of a nocturnal animal's growl and a deep voice.

"No no no you're not like him! He's not like you! You're a monster!" she yelled.

"Your blood is so sweet; it calls to me. You have an aura, little girl. You call to me, you call to us, _my kind"_ he said in a mocking voice as he pulled her closer to his face. Riley cried as she felt the man's grip forcefully tilt her neck and his teeth stopped on top of her jugular, ready to sink into her skin. "They call people like you ' _la jeune fille',_ the maiden. You are quite special, indeed. Oh the power running through your veins, my dear."

Suddenly, a sharp pain struck Riley by the neck, and she began to scream. It was the worst physical pain she had ever felt in her life. The burning sensation spread all around her body, and she saw fire through her eyes. Strangely, it almost felt like an out of body experience, as if her body was lowly slipping away from her mind. Like her consciousness was falling to the darkness. She willed her eyes to stay open, but her lids were fluttering to a close.

"GET AWAY FROM HER" a voice cried out, her brain citing the familiar voice. Everything was dark, and all she could feel was pain, but _that voice,_ it called out to her.

She struggle to open her eyes, and when she finally managed to take a peek of what was going on, despite the fuzziness and numbness, then she saw flashes of movements. It was as if she was in slow motion and the rest of the world was played fast forward. There was a blur of movement, and suddenly, the monster was wrenched away from her, leaving her stumbling backwards in search of something to help her balance. Her legs felt weightless and she looked down at her hands and saw blood flowing down her body like a waterfall.

 _That's my blood,_ Riley thought as she felt the cold red liquid stain her shirt all the way to her legs. _I'm losing too much blood._

Her stomach churned and disgust filled her head; she couldn't stand the sight of her own blood flowing across her body. Bile rose from her throat, and she bent down and emptied her stomach. She stared at the ground as she vomited, and she felt sickened once she noticed that she was making a puddle of her own blood. Due to her position, she barely took any notice of the things happening a few feet away from her. All she could hear was loud roars and growls of something that didn't sound human.

Riley's body froze in panic, and she looked up into the darkness in front of her. Her mind only registering fast, shadowy actions, and silhouettes. After a few seconds of just watching with confusion, the actions stopped entirely and a loud crashing sound came after. She winced at the noise and looked to where it came from, the bench. On the now-fallen bench was the creepy man who had attacked her. He was lying unconscious after being knocked out. Riley was feeling the effects of the blood loss and she struggled to even keep herself from falling. She was on the verge of passing out, and the feeling of blood dripping all over her body was not registering into her head.

Finally, she gave into the numbness that was spreading across her body, and she fainted. Before her body fell to the ground, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her and lift her. Her eyes blinked open once more, and she saw Damon's eyes looking down at her. His face was covered in blood, and his eyes were blood red like the monster's. He looked at her with wide eyes, and a panicked expression.

"Don't worry. You're safe now. I've got you" he muttered as she closed her eyes, passing out from the pain.

Then her world was darkness and pain.

 _Riles, come on! Stay awake!,_ the darkness yelled. Riley pushed and pulled at the pain, trying so desperately to answer, but the agony clawed at her heart.

 _Please, you need to be okay_ , it practically begged.

 _You're special, Riley Matthews. The world hasn't met you just yet. Please open your eyes_ , Damon's voice shouted to her, guiding her away from the pull to the dark.

 _Open your eyes!_ Damon's tearful eyes looked down at her, his hands cradling her face.

 _Open your eyes!_ A hand was brought up to her mouth and wetness spread across her tongue. She gagged at the taste of sweetness flowing through her throat. The feeling of pain was replaced by something akin to strength, to something growing and mixing into her veins.

 _Open your eyes!_

Riley's eyes snapped open, and she sat up on her bed. She looked around, and she noticed that she was in her room, sitting on top of her own bed. Confusion filled her whole being as her mind tried to register what had happened.

It was already daytime, and the light shined brightly from the bay window. She could hear the birds chirping, and the scent of cooked pancakes assaulted her. She looked around her room, trying to find some inconsistencies or something to answer her confusion but saw that nothing seemed out of place. Her room was spotless; it looked as good as it did yesterday, everything untouched and in it's proper place.

Riley pushed down her covers, and inspected her clothing. She was wearing her baggy t-shirt that she usually wore to bed; she even had her favorite fuzzy socks on.

"I don't remember going to bed" she whispered to herself as she stood from her bed. Carefully, she stretched her arms, searching for any signs of pain or numbness. She didn't feel any ounce of pain, and she became utterly bewildered.

Riley vividly remembered the stinging pain that spread throughout her body, but she didn't seem to hold any proof of it ever happening at all. She could of sworn that her neck practically burned last night.

 _Her neck!_ The piercing pain she had endured was like none that she had ever felt before. Surely, she had to have some sort of reminder of the torture from last night. She ran quickly to her vanity, and turned on the lights to her mirror. Tilting her head a little to get a better view of her neck, she examined her skin with utmost attention. She searched for signs and traces of blood and scars but to her disappointment, the skin on her neck looked perfectly fine.

Riley was extremely puzzled, and she looked at her confused face through the mirror. She frowned and tried to find an explanation for what had happened yesterday.

"I went to the park. There was a man there. No…there was a monster. He had attacked me….then Damon came….What happened yesterday!?" she said to her reflection in a puzzled voice. "Its all so weird….How am I home?"

Giving up, she resorted to changing into a white shirt, and floral printed shorts. Barefooted, she walked slowly towards the living room. She scratched her head in confusion, and stopped at the end of the hallway.

Her parents were sitting on the couch with their phones in their hands. They were frantically dialing numbers and listing things down while her brother sat on the bench of their dining table with a plate of pancakes in his hand. Auggie wasn't eating any of the food, and instead, he sat staring at their parents with a frown on his face.

Riley didn't want to interrupt the busy, bustling actions of her family, but her stomach growled in hunger, and she coughed loudly in an effort to call for attention. All at once, everyone stopped their actions and their eyes stared at where the noise had come from. Her family looked at her from where she stood at the entrance of the hallway, and she blushed at the heated stares of her family. They looked at her with a mixture of shock, disbelief, and relief. She raised an eyebrow at their expressions.

Suddenly, her mother rushed towards her, and enveloped her in a warm, motherly embrace. Her mother's arms squeezed her confused form tightly. Riley was befuddled by her mother's action, and she could feel her mom's body shaking like she was crying.

Silently, Riley reached up and hesitantly wrapped her own arms around her mother's back. She could feel tears of her own filling up her eyes, and she whimpered when she felt her mother brushing her hair in comforting way.

"When did you get home, sweetie?" her mother asked in a shaky voice.

"Mommy, why are you crying?" she mumbled, sniffling as she spoke. Her mother let out a sigh and pushed back to cradle her daughter's face in her hands.

"Riley, I though I lost you" her mother said tearfully. She carefully brushed away Riley's tears with the palm of her hand, and gave Riley a kiss on the forehead. "You weren't answering your phone, and you just ran out the door in the middle of the night!"

"Don't you ever do that to us ever again, sweetheart" she heard her father say. She looked away from her mother's faced and looked at her dad. Cory Matthews was not a man who cried very often, but in that instance, her father had tears flowing freely down his cheeks.

"We sat up all night worrying about you! If you had gotten hurt, I don't know what I would have done. Maybe I would have gotten a heart attack! And I'm too young to get a heart attack" her father joked, trying to lighten the mood. Nevertheless, he pulled her away from Topanga's embrace and into his arms. She rested the side of her face against her father's chest and sobbed as he lovingly patted her back. She could feel her father's tears dropping down onto the top of her head, and she closed her eyes, trying to let her father's gentle hug calm her anxious confusion.

"I'm so sorry, daddy" she weeped, her hands gripping her father's shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug.

"No, Riley. We're sorry" he replied in a sad voice. "We've failed you. We haven't been listening to you. We haven't been there for you. We're bad parents"

Riley shook her head, and pushed her father away. She hastily wiped away the remainder of her tears with her hands, and she gave her father a heartwarming smile. "No, dad. We all mistakes."

"Then let's start forgiving each other! Me next! Me next!" a voice called out. Her brother, Auggie, rushed towards her, and crashed into her body. His arms wrapped around her waist, and he slammed his face into her stomach. Riley chuckled tearfully at her brother's embrace and reached down to pat his head. "I'm sorry, Riley. I'm sorry that I ate your cereal last week without telling you. You scared me so much! I thought you weren't ever coming home" he grumbled into her stomach, his face dug into her shirt, and she couldn't help but giggle.

"I'm sorry, Auggie. I never meant to scare you" she said in a comforting voice. "I just needed to get away, you know"

"Next time, you can talk to me. I'm a good listener!" he replied.

"Okay…we can try that" she promised. Riley lifted her brother into her arms and carried him back to the bench and sat down with him cradled in her lap.

"In fact, we can all start practicing how to listen" her mother announced as she joined them at the table, taking her seat across from Riley's.

"A new homework" her father agreed, placing his hand on Riley's shoulder and giving her a tentative smile. She nodded back at him, and placed her hand on top of his, squeezing it as she gave him a smile of her own.

"Okay, now that we're all listening though…." Auggie mumbled. "Where did you go last night?"

Riley froze and felt her heart clench as she looked at her family's expecting stares. The spot on her neck suddenly ached with phantom pain. Reality came crashing back down, and she opened her mouth to answer as her skin started to throb in agony.

* * *

 **So that happened. Riley gets attacked by a monster, but was it really a monster? Can the Matthews salvage the failing relationships surrounding their family? And how does Damon fit into all of this?! Also why is Riley fine all of a sudden!? Explanations will be said in the next chapter, and the mysterious Damon Salvatore becomes not so mysterious after all. Tune in next time for more answers and even more questions. The next two chapters will close this section of Riley's life (the Realization arc). Please favorite and follow for some more goodness! Also, leave me a review and lemme know what y'all think of the story so far. Any requests? Suggestions? Negative reactions? Feel free to comment; I'd really appreciate!**


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